


Breathe

by Silverkleptofox



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Flashbacks, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, PTSD, post-BoO
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-25
Updated: 2016-03-25
Packaged: 2018-05-28 22:04:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6347398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverkleptofox/pseuds/Silverkleptofox
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When a simple game of capture the flag goes horribly wrong, the son of Hades suffers for it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breathe

**Author's Note:**

> I had an idea for a story like this and posted the prompt on tumblr. I said that if no one wrote it I would have to myself, even though I'm not the best writer. So here it is, out of my head and into text.

It had started innocently enough. They had been playing Capture the Flag, Hermes and Poseidon vs. Aphrodite and Hades. Really the Hermes cabin just wanted to team up with Percy, but Aphrodite cabin wouldn't allow it unless they got a Big Three kid of their own and Jason wouldn't be back until that night. Piper had been very convincing.

"You know Piper, when you asked me to join you in this game, I thought I would be doing more than sitting on a rock." Nico grumbled half-heartedly. He and Piper had taken the north point- it was one of the only places to cross the creek and get to the Aphrodite flag. They had been there waiting for more than thirty minutes and Nico was getting bored of just twirling his sword.

Piper sighed. "Yeah. I was hoping there would be more action up here. I guess my cabin is keeping Hermes' at bay pretty well." She shrugged. 

Suddenly a scream echoed from the woods to the nearby east. Piper and Nico shared a glance. "Was that...?" Nico began. 

"Drew." Piper groaned, and ran into the woods to investigate, Nico hot on her heels. 

They got about a quarter of a mile into the woods when Piper went flying- caught in a net like a wild deer. 

"Schist!" She shouted in frustration. Nico readied his sword to cut her down, but Piper interrupted. "Don't worry about me, just make sure Drew is okay. Cabin 11 must've set traps. I'll be fine!" Nico nodded and headed further east. Suddenly the suspicious lack of activity made sense. None had come to challenge their spot for the flag because that had been Cabin 11's plan all along- draw everyone out and take the flag later. It was a dirty trick but Nico had to admire it.

"Someone get this thing off me!" He heard Drew's annoying voice from afar. Nico thought about taking his time, but then thought better of it. He started off at a run, but something caught his foot and he went flying to the ground- but then the ground opened up and swallowed him whole, and something dark and solid slammed over his head, trapping him inside. 

No, no, no, nonononono...! Nico's brain immediately panicked. It was small. He was trapped. He couldn't tell if his vision was going dark or if the sun had gone out. Out. He needed to get out. Oh gods he couldn't breathe. There was no air left in the jar. He felt like he was floating, his body not quite real.

Nico could hear the voices of Giants- they were right there, right outside the jar, waiting to kill him. Oh gods he was running out of air. He needed to get out. But there weren't any shadows- there wasn't any light to cast a shadow- it was completely dark. Dark and small and trapped trapped trapped and he was out of pomegranate seeds. He could taste the fruit in the back of his mouth and he clenched his gut when the waves of nausea hit him. But there was nothing there, he hadn't eaten in days, not since he plunged into Tartarus.  
Oh gods that place. They had found him there, and dragged him here, in this jar, and now they were going to kill him and the world was going to end when Gaea woke and he couldn't. Get. Free. 

He couldn't breathe. 

He couldn't...  
\---------

Cabin 11 was a mass of smiles and good-heaters handshakes with the recently-freed members of Cabin 10. Once nearly everyone had fallen into a trap, Connor and Travis had simply walked up to Aphrodite's flag and took it down. The Aphrodite kids were a bit bruised but generally unharmed, save for their pride. Only two or three had headed to the infirmary with minor injuries. A sprained ankle and a couple of scrapes, at most. All in all it was a pretty tame match, surprisingly. 

Piper shook hands with Travis with a sigh and surveyed the defeated members of her team. Everyone seemed accounted for except...

"Hey, where's Nico?" Percy asked from behind her. He had strolled over from the Hermes side to talk to Piper. 

"I don't see him." Piper responded. 

"You think he might've left? He's not big on crowds." Percy offered. 

"Maybe." Piper shrugged. "He probably shadow travelled back to his cabin. Wanna come with?" 

Percy nodded. Will was going to have a conniption if he found out Nico had shadow traveled against his orders again. 

\---------

When they got to Cabin 13, Nico wasn't there. 

"He's probably at the infirmary helping out Solace." Percy shrugged. Of course Nico would be hanging out in the infirmary with the son of Apollo. Those two had been close since the incident with Gaea ended months ago. 

Piper nodded. "You're probably right."

\---------

Percy and Piper strolled into the infirmary. A couple of assistants raised their eyebrows, scanning them for obvious injuries, but said nothing. They found Will mending Drew Tanaka's ankle on a cot.

Piper smiled. "Hey Will, has Nico been in here?"

Will stopped his wrapping for a second and looked up. "No, I haven't seen him. Is something wrong?" With Nico - the last part hung in the air unsaid, but Piper and Percy understood. 

"We haven't seen him since the game, and he's not in his cabin." Percy offered. 

Piper nodded. "Last I saw him he ran off to go help Drew." She gestured to the girl sitting on the cot. 

"Well I never saw him." Drew rolled her eyes. "I sat in that pit-trap until the game was over and Connor heard me shouting." She huffed.

"You mean he didn't make it to you?" Piper shared a glance with Percy, who nodded at Will.

Will clenched his jaw. "Give me a moment to finish up here. We've got a son of Hades to find." 

\---------

They had cornered the Stoll brothers and questioned them about all the traps they had set. Percy was pretty sure no simple trap could hold Nico di Angelo, Ghost King and shadow-traveler, but they had eliminated everywhere else. 

So while Piper chewed out Connor, Travis had taken Will and Percy on the grand tour of the traps of Hermes Cabin, to no avail. Nico was nowhere to be found. 

"Well there's one more we can check." Travis said. "But it's just a scare-trap, there's no actual 'trap' quality to it. Bit of a disappointment, really. It never worked right. One push to the lid and you're free."

Travis pulled back the lid of the trap, and there, curled up in the tiny wooden box, was Nico. 

"Oh gods..."

"NICO!" Percy shouted as Will rushed forward. He kneeled next to the opening and peered in. "Nico, hey, are you alright?" Nico didn't respond. 

Will reached into the trap and just barely caught Nico's carotid artery under his fingertips. His pulse was fast and thready and not at all steady. "Schist!" Will cursed under his breath. This not good. "Percy, help me pull him up." Will ordered. 

Percy nodded and knelt next to will at the edge of the trap. It couldn't have been bigger than three feet square, but it was at least four feet deep, and Nico was curled up as small as he could make himself in the bottom. 

"What's wrong with him? Why didn't he just get out?" Travis floundered.

"Not now." Will said sharply, cutting the son of Hermes off.

If he would have only stood up, he would've figured out the lid wasn't on... Percy thought. But after what had happened in Tartarus... Nico probably panicked as soon as the lid shut. Percy got his hands underneath one of Nico's arms as Will grabbed the other, and the two of them pulled. Nico was completely out of it, his limpness making him heavy. They pulled him out of the trap and Nico lay curled in the dirt. 

"Damn it..." Will cursed again, finally getting a look at Nico's unconscious face. 

Will thumbed open one of Nico's eyelids to check his status. His dark eyes were halfway rolled back, pupils blown. He was hyperventilating softly and his whole frame was trembling. "Percy, get Travis and everyone else out of here." 

"What's going on?" Percy asked with a voice full of concern. 

"I think Nico had a flashback in that trap. He might still be dissociating when he comes to." Will sighed quietly. "He wouldn't want everyone to see, so just get everyone away please." Percy nodded and set about shooing Travis and everyone else out of the woods.

Will racked his brain for every detail he knew of what had happened to Nico during the battle with Gaea. He had traveled to New Rome, been to Tartarus, got captured, he was put in a jar.... the jar! That had to be it. The trap must have reminded him of being trapped in the jar.

"Hey, Nico?" Will said quietly to the unconscious boy "Nico, listen to me. You need to wake up. You're not trapped. You're not in danger. You're safe. I'm right here, and Percy is on his way. You're at Camp Half-Blood, in the woods we use for Capture the Flag. You're safe. You're okay." Nico wasn't responding. Will reached forward and gently placed his hand on Nico's shoulder. It was just enough for Will to get a sense of Nico's current state. He was just under the surface of consciousness, panicking, exhausted, and hungry and sore and a host of other things that made Will just want to gather Nico up into his arms and make it all okay. It was the healer in him, he supposed. But right now he needed to find a way to help Nico that would work. 

"Okay." Will took a deep breath. Nico was still breathing much too fast. "If you can hear me, Nico, breathe with me. In..." He counted to seven "... And out." No change. Will placed his other hand on Nico's forehead and hummed a quick hymn of Apollo, pouring just a little bit of healing energy into Nico- just enough to bring him to the surface. Nico stirred, his lashes fluttering as he slowly woke. "Breathe with me, Nico." Will repeated the mantra calmly, and Nico started to cough. "Hey, hey, slowly, Nico, slowly." Will put his hand on Nico's chest and Nico didn't shrug him off. Will began the mantra again, and he could feel Nico trying to mimic him. 

Good. Will thought. It was progress, at least. 

Just then Percy ran up the hill. "We're all clear!" He plopped down next to where Nico was still curled up on his side on the fallen leaves. "How's he doing?"

"Better, but still not okay." Will said as he gently carded his fingers through Nico's hair. "He's almost awake, but I'm not sure if..."

"If he'll be with us or somewhere else?" Percy asked as he reached forward to shuffle his fingers through Nico's hair as well. Will watched to make sure it wasn't upsetting Nico before he said anything. No adverse reaction, that was good. "You guessed it." Will replied. "I think he's remembering the incident with the jar. I'm going to need more details on that situation once this is over, if that's okay with you...?" 

Percy nodded. "Avoid pomegranates, I think." 

Will raised and eyebrow bit didn't say anything more. Nico's breathing started to even out, and his eyes were closed. Poor kid must've been exhausted. He had been through so much at such a young age.

Percy felt Nico shift under his hand. "Will, he's coming to." Nico groaned and shifted, trying to get his arms underneath his trunk to push himself up.

"Whoa, whoa, don't get up yet." Will said. "Just take it slow." Nico jolted and his eyes flew open, wide and unfocused. Nico fought to get up, but Percy held him down.

Will gasped "Percy no..!" But it was too late- Nico lashed out in a panic and clocked Percy right in the nose. 

"Schist!" Percy cursed as he grabbed his nose and backed off. Nico rolled over and scooted away from the both of them, eyes frantically scanning the terrain, probably for a weapon or a decent shadow. Will was glad they had left his sword in the trap.

"Nico..." Will said calmly. "You're alright, you're safe. It's me, it's Will Solace and Percy Jackson. We're here to help. You're okay. You're safe." He rambled platitudes in a cool, collected tone as he slowly approached the son of Hades. 

Nico's brows furrowed, and then he brought his hand to his forehead. He looked around, still a bit dazed.

"Where...?" Nico said softly. His voice cracked from the dryness in his throat. Will reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bottle of water. He pressed it into Nico's shaking hands and steadied it as the dark-haired demigod sipped slowly.

"You're at Camp Half-Blood." Percy said softly, pressing his fingers to the side of his nose. "Out in the woods." 

Nico swallowed. "We were playing capture the flag... I was helping Piper get over the border, then I fell..." Nico's eyes widened and he started breathing heavier.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, you're okay, you're safe." Will gently grabbed Nico's arms while Percy squeezed his shoulder. "The Hermes cabin set traps. There was a drop-box. That's all it was. Just a box. You weren't trapped. They didn't know, Nico. No one meant for this to happen. You're safe. You're safe. "

Nico took a deep, shuddering breath. "I-I'm okay. I'm okay." He whispered. He curled his hands together and twisted his skull ring absent-mindedly.

Will reached up to take Nico's pulse again. It was still fast, but much better. "Glad to hear it." He smiled. "You ready to get out of here?" 

Nico nodded and tried to stand up, but he pitched forward right into Will and Percy's arms. "M' legs are numb." Nico mumbled as he blushed furiously. Percy chortled and held Nico steady as Will came up under his knees to lift him up. Nico shot him a half-hearted glare but Percy just smiled. If Nico was too tired to comment about being carried, then Percy wouldn't tease him about it.

"Do you want to go to the infirmary or...?" Will asked as they started making their way down the hill.

"I just want to go home." Nico sighed. 

Percy's eyes widened and he looked over Nico's head to Will. They were both thinking the same thing.

Home. 

They grinned at each other and headed for Cabin 13.  
\---------

Percy opened the granite door to Nico's cabin and the green torches flickered to life. Will made his way over to the bed and set Nico down onto it. The poor kid was exhausted. He hadn't needed Will's help since they made it down the hill but Will refused to let him go. Something about doctors and liability. Nico was pretty sure Will was just being overbearing. They had heard Piper's voice from the Hermes cabin- that girl could be loud when she was angry.  
Nico was torn between wanting to summon an army of undead to raze the Hermes cabin and not wanting to admit anything was wrong in the first place. Then again, Piper's wrath was probably enough. It had been an accident, after all.

Nico just had to keep reminding himself of that. It was an accident. 

Holding grudges was his fatal flaw and Nico would be damned if he was going to let it get to him. 

"You hungry?" Percy asked, breaking Nico from his train of thought. "You know what, of course you are. I'll be back!" Percy popped out of the cabin, leaving Nico and Will alone for the moment.

"He better not being back blue food." Nico mumbled.

"I know right!?" Will exclaimed, startling Nico a bit. "Sorry. It's just so weird. Blue food." 

Nico couldn't help but chuckle as he sat up. 

Will sat next to him on the dark comforter. "I'm just glad you're alright." He sighed. "Say, Nico. When you were... In that trap... Why didn't you just shadow travel out of there?"

Nico met Will's eyes with a hint of confusion before looking away. "You told me if I shadow-traveled again before you said I was clear, you would kill me yourself." He mumbled.

Will was dumbstruck. Even in the middle of a panic-induced flashback, Nico had remembered Will's words.  
"Well I'm glad then. But seriously, if it's an emergency, I'll forgive you. Keep yourself safe, Nico. Doctor's orders."

Nico huffed in amusement. "Sure thing, doc."

**Author's Note:**

> The three of them plus Piper, Jason, and Annabeth ended up watching 90's cartoons and eating blue popcorn in Cabin 13 on a borrowed Hephaestus Cabin laptop that night. Jason has iris-messaged Hazel about the day's events to keep her and Frank in the loop. That and if she found out on her own what had happened to her brother, she would bury them all alive. 
> 
> Literally.


End file.
